Each month, Let’s Talk will focus on sayings that might sound funny or confusing to a new language learner. So if you have ever thought “What did they mean by that?” or “What are they trying to say?” this column is for you.
November ushers in cooler temperatures and many people find they get hungrier in colder weather. Food sayings are commonplace any time of year, so here is a sampling!
Here are four idioms – expressions in which the meanings of the words are not the same as the meaning of the saying – that one might hear used in connection with food.
Piece of cake
A task that is very easy
“Adaego tutored other students in calculus because it was a piece of cake for her.”
Apple of one’s eye
Someone in whom you have great pride
“Abu’s son was the apple of his eye.”
Spill the beans
To tell a secret to someone who is not supposed to know
“David spilled the beans about Monique’s pregnancy to her parents before she had a chance to tell them.”
To go bananas
Become erratic or mad about something
“Raissa went bananas when she found out that her rent was being raised by $100 a month.”
If you have questions about sayings you have heard Americans use that you don’t understand, or if you have questions about American culture, please email your questions to Claudia at [email protected] and “Let’s Talk” will be happy to help.
Claudia Jakubowski has her master’s degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages).
